The present invention refers to an arrangement for managing a herd of freely walking animals, comprising an area for receiving the animals, a milking station and a plurality of waiting stations leading from the receiving area to at least the milking station.
In the following the animals referred to are diary cows. However, the invention is not limited to cows, but is applicable to any animals having the ability to produce large quantities of milk, such as sheep, goats, buffaloes, horses etc.
An arrangement for managing a herd of freely walking animal, for example diary cows, is disclosed in WO 96/19917. The arrangement disclosed by WO 96/19917 comprises a milking stall located in a receiving area and having a milking machine and a device for automatic attachment of the teatcups of the milking machine to the teats of the cow to be milked. The milking stall comprises an entrance and an exit and is provided for housing one single cow. A cow, one at a time, may enter the milking stall voluntarily. At the entrance of the milking stall an identification device is provided, which identifies said cow with the aid of a transponder carried by the cow entering the milking stall. The identification of a specific animal is transmitted to a computer, in which facts concerning each cow, for instance when she was last milked, etc, are stored. Thereafter, an examination device examines the condition of the udder and the teats with regard to how clean they are and if milking is needed. These facts together with the data about the specific cow, which are already stored in the computer, are processed in the computer to determine if the animal should be milked or if she is to leave the milking stall.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,771,837 discloses a milking arrangement including a receiving area, a milking station and a waiting station before the milking station. The waiting station is arranged to house one animal before it is permitted to enter the milking station or is guided back to the receiving area.
A problem with the known kind of arrangements is that occasionally a lot of cows are crowded at the entrance of the milking stall, wherein a cow, being above other cows in rank, may push herself forward through the crowd and enter the milking stall. Because of this, cows of lower rank may reach the milking stall less often. If a cow of lower rank has to wait too long she may become tired, and even leave the milking stall entrance. Consequently cows, which are above other cows in rank may prevent the latters from being milked. Furthermore, it happens that cows of high rank enter the milking stall more often than needed, wherein the cows have to leave the milking stall without being milked. This is very time consuming and results in unsatisfactory utilisation of the milking machine in the milking stall. Another problem with this arrangement is that some cows do not visit the milking stall frequently enough.
The object of the present invention is to provide an arrangement for housing a herd of freely walking animals, which arrangement is adapted to remedy the problems discussed above. Furthermore, an object of the invention is to improve the efficiency in animal management.
This object is obtained by the arrangement initially defined, wherein each waiting station is arranged to receive one animal and comprises an identification device for identifying said animal entering said waiting station, said arrangement further comprising memory means arranged for providing a value of a parameter related to the milk production of an animal identified by the identification device and present in one of said waiting stations, and means for analysing the value of the parameter and determining if an animal present in one of said waiting stations is to be milked in response to said value and with regard to said value for an animal present in another one of said waiting stations.
An advantage of this arrangement is that the utilisation of the milking machine in the milking station becomes optimal. Furthermore, since the waiting station is located ahead of the milking station and only may house one animal, a crowd in front of the milking station is avoided. The parameter may involve at least one of the lactation status of an animal, a desired interval between two milking operations of an animal and the expected milk yield of an animal. Thanks to the plurality of waiting stations, it is possible for a plurality of animals to enter a respective waiting station and either be retained in the waiting station, successively be milked in the milking station or successively enter the animal passage and consequently the receiving area. An advantage of having a plurality of waiting stations located ahead of the milking station is that a crowd of animals will arise neither in front of a waiting station nor in front of a milking station. Furthermore, this arrangement enables milking of the cow which is in greatest need of being milked independent of the rank of the cow.
According to an embodiment of the invention an animal passage leads from the waiting station past the milking station to the receiving area. Hereby, the animal present in the waiting station may either be guided through the animal passage to the receiving area or to the milking station. Furthermore, directing means are arranged to direct said animal from the waiting station either to the animal passage or the milking station. Consequently, an animal which is not to be milked may be prevented from entering the milking station.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, control means is adapted to control the directing means in response to said determination, i.e. if a cow is to be milked or not, in order to direct said animal either to the milking station in case of a milking operation of said animal or to the animal passage leading said animal through the animal passage into the receiving area. Consequently, by means of said control means, the position of the directing means are controlled. The control means may be realised by a computer which also includes said means arranged for providing a value of a parameter related to the milk production and said analysing means.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the directing means comprises a gate device, which in a first state prevents passage of an animal through said animal passage and permits passage of an animal to the milking station and which in a second state permits passage of an animal through said animal passage and prevents passage of an animal to the milking station.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the control means is arranged to control the position of the gate device to take said second state immediately after an animal has entered the milking station. Hereby, it is possible to let an animal present in the waiting station, which is not to be milked, to enter the animal passage and pass therethrough to the receiving area while an animal is present in the milking station.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the directing means also comprises an exit device provided at the waiting station, which exit device in an open state permits an animal to leave the waiting station and in a closed state prevents an animal from leaving the waiting station. Furthermore, the control means is arranged to close the exit gate immediately after an animal has left the waiting station. By having an exit device at the waiting station which may be closed immediately after an animal has left the waiting station, it may be guaranteed that only one animal at the time may leave the waiting station, whereby no crowding may arise at the milking station.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the waiting station comprises an entering device, which in an open state permits an animal to enter said waiting station and in a closed state prevents an animal from entering said waiting station. Furthermore, the control means is adapted to control the position of the entering device to take the open state when the waiting station is empty and the closed state when an animal has entered the waiting station. Hereby, an animal that has entered the waiting station may not leave the same without either passing through the animal passage or the milking station. Consequently, this results in milking of an animal that has entered the waiting station and which is to be milked.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the waiting station comprises one feed supply device for feeding an animal being present in the waiting station. The feed supply device may be arranged to entice an animal to enter the waiting station. Furthermore, by having a feed supply device in the waiting station, the waiting station may work as a feeding stall. The feed supply device in the waiting station may be the only one arranged in the receiving area. Hereby, it may be guaranteed that an animal will enter the waiting station and consequently, also be milked as often as desired. If a cow has entered the waiting station only for being fed, she may be offered an amount of feed, but only such an amount that she will return to the waiting station, at least when the value of the parameter is such that she is to be milked.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the feed supply device is arranged to offer feed in response to the identification performed by the identification device. When an animal present in the waiting station has been identified, the identification of said specific animal is transmitted to the control means, i.e. the computer which will initiate the feeding. If the animal present in the waiting station is to be milked and an animal is already present in the milking station, the feed supply device may offer feed in the meantime. The animal may only be offered a small amount of feed at a feeding rate which makes it possible for the animal in the waiting station to consume all the feed before it is time to leave the waiting station in order to enter the milking station and be milked.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the analysing means is arranged to compare the parameters in case that two or more animals, each of which is present in a respective of said waiting stations, are to be milked in order to determine which of these animal is in greatest need of being milked. Hereby, an animal present in a waiting station and being below the other animals, present in a respective waiting station, in rank may be milked before said other animals if so desired.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the control means are arranged to control the directing means in response to said determination in order to direct the animal to be milked from the waiting station in question to the milking station, wherein the control means is arranged to control the position of the gate device to take said second state and to close the exit gate provided at the waiting station in question so that the waiting station in question is able to receive a new animal from the receiving area, whereby a new comparison is performed by the analysing means. By this arrangement it is guaranteed that the animal, which is in greatest need of being milked is all the time the animal that will first be milked. If the animal, last to enter a waiting station, is in greatest need of being milked, she is the one, which is first to be milked. Furthermore, it is possible during the time an animal is present in the milking station for an animal present in a waiting station, which animal is not to be milked, to be guided to pass through the animal passage and enter the receiving area.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the milking station comprises milking means for automatic milking of an animal. When an animal has entered the milking station and is present in the milking station the automatic milking means, i.e a milking machine, is activated by the control means, i.e. the computer.